Foggy night transforms Tokyo government building into Final Fantasy dungeon

Located a short stroll from Shinjuku Station, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, or Tocho, as it’s commonly called, is one of the city’s most easily recognizable landmarks. Its design is distinctive, stately, powerful…and honestly, if you stare at it too long, it starts to look a little sinister.

Driving this sentiment home were a few Japanese Twitters user who worked a little photo editing magic to prove that Tocho would make a perfect dwelling for an RPG boss in a title from video game giant Square Enix.

Tocho’s two towers are the building’s most memorable characteristic. In real life, they house a pair of observation decks, where visitors can peer out over the sprawling metropolis, pick up some souvenirs, and even grab a bite to eat.

However, you’d never expect to find anything so benign up there from looking at Tocho under certain conditions.

▼ We’re guessing there’s a kidnapped princess at the top of the spire on the right, and the evil wizard who’s responsible in the one on the left.

Add in some atmospheric fog, like the kind that rolled into the Tokyo area last weekend, and the spooky effect is amplified.

In particular, there’s something evocative about the way the light is reflecting off the clouds. Hmm…where have we seen something like that before? Let’s see if Twitter user Dadada can jog our memory.

Consider our memories jogged, as Dadada hits the nail right on the spikey-haired head. Tocho in the fog makes an excellent real-world stand in for the Mako reactor from the opening of Final Fantasy VII.

Still not convinced? Look at how natural the game’s hero, Cloud, looks standing in front of the building, in a tweet sent out by user Setsugekka.